Defining terrorism: Purposes -- Goals -- State terror -- Terrorism and warfare -- Outline of the book -- A brief history of terrorism: Beginnings -- Religious motivations -- Revolutionary motivations -- The first wave -- The second wave -- The third wave -- The first war of the twenty-first century: The new terrorism -- What's new -- Jihadi organizations -- Al Qaeda -- Who they are, where they come from, and why they do it: What conditions give rise to terrorism? -- What kind of people become terrorists? -- Why do people become terrorists? -- Where do terrorist organizations come from? -- Reacting to terrorism: Impact on the victims -- The role of mass media -- Models of government response -- Carrots -- Sticks -- The end of terrorism: The individual -- The group -- Campaigns -- A concluding observation -- The future.